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City of Newcastle - Side Hustle Bootcamp
Proudly supported by the City of Newcastle New Skills Program
What is a side hustle?
A side hustle business is an early stage startup business which is developed on a part-time basis while still working a full time job or having full time responsibilities. It is typically aligned with a person’s passions, skills and hobbies with the goal of commercialising those strengths in the marketplace and perhaps eventually replace the full time job or responsibilities.
Do I need to have an idea for a side hustle already or is this Program designed to help me create a side hustle idea?
This Program is for people who have an idea for a business and who want to take it to the next level, potentially turning it, over time into a full time opportunity. In order to be eligible you will need an existing idea. However, the idea does not need to be perfectly well-formed and nor should it be an already running business. What the Program will help you with is testing an idea and shaping it into becoming a business.
What type of side hustle ideas are you looking for?
We are looking for business ideas that offer fresh thinking or fill a local supply gap. The idea should reflect and support the civic values of the City of Newcastle of:
Care for our community
Being a resilient community
Living active lives
Enabling an inclusive community
New and creative ideas
Fostering good leaders
Making sure that everyone is welcome and
Looking after the environment around us
Application Process
How do I apply?
Applications are now closed.
How many places are available?
Places are available to support and empower 15 Newcastle residents to turn their side hustle start-up ideas into reality.
Who is eligible?
This Program is for people with a side hustle business idea who live or work in the Newcastle local government area. Applicants are required to be aged 14 years or above. For people aged under 18 years old, they will need guardian permission to participate in the Program.
How long will the application take to complete?
The application form is completed online and shouldn’t take more than 15 minutes to complete.
When do applications close?
Applications closed on Friday 18 February at 9pm AEDT.
How long will it take to find out if I am successful?
All applicants will be contacted by Friday 25 February and informed whether they were successful or not.
What are the next steps if I am successful?
If successful you will be emailed an Offer of Enrolment. This will include an overview of the Program and expectations. The Offer will need to be acknowledged in a reply email to confirm your place in the Program. Upon receiving your confirmation you will be enrolled and onboarded into the Program.
The Bootcamp Program
How much will the Program cost me?
The Program is free of charge. The City of Newcastle is funding training courses under their NewSkills program – to assist Newcastle residents and local businesses to gain and develop their talents.
What should I expect to achieve from participating in the Program?
Participating in the Program you should expect to learn the methods and tools for testing an idea and shaping it into becoming a business. The final outcome achieved, however, will be different for each participant depending on their idea, personal goals and resources available.
For example, for some participants it may be possible to take an idea from its infancy all the way through to launching and running a business. For other participants it will be understanding the business model for realising the idea and what the next steps will be to launch. And, for others, it may be learning that the idea should be shelved, but knowing how to approach a side hustle when that next idea comes along.
What topics will the Program cover?
The Program will teach participants about the building blocks necessary for a successful side hustle. This will include topics such as defining clear value proposition, building a Minimum Viable Products (MVP), understanding business models, how to brand your business, creating websites and using digital marketing channels. The Program will also provide participants with the methods and tools for incrementally validating and testing all aspects of their side hustle business.
How will the Program be delivered?
The Program is structured around six (6) topic areas that are spaced 2-3 weeks apart. Each topic includes:
Online lessons - video content and reading material
Activities - specific tasks to put lesson content into practice including access to tools and resources
Group workshops - 1 hour sessions to work directly with Program mentors (a mixture of online and face-to-face).
When and where will the Program be run?
Each of the six (6) Program topics are delivered on a schedule with the first topic beginning on 4 March 2022 and the Program completing on 16 June 2022.
For online lessons and activities, these will be undertaken by the participants wherever and whenever is convenient. The lessons and activities in each topic have been divided into bite-sized chunks and scheduled so as to make it more flexible for participants to work through the material in their own time.
The group workshop for each topic is scheduled at a fixed day and time. There will be three (3) face-to-face workshops and these will be held at the I2N Hub Honeysuckle in Newcastle (16 Honeysuckle Dr, Newcastle NSW 2300). There will also be three (3) online workshops and these will be conducted as a Zoom group video conferencing session. Finally, at Program completion, a graduation and launch presentation will be held in Newcastle as an opportunity for all participants to share their side hustle to the local community and media.
The location and times for all the workshops are listed below:
Workshop times and locations
What level of commitment is required to participate in the Program?
Being a Side Hustle Bootcamp, it is understood that many participants will be participating in the Program “on the side”. That said, the more time that can be committed to developing your business idea the better. However, there are some minimum commitments that will ensure you get the most out of the Program:
The online lessons include video content and reading material to consume as well as activities to complete that will take approximately 2 - 4 hours per topic. There are a total of six (6) topics and they are spaced 2 - 3 weeks apart.
The group workshop (face-to-face or online) for each topic is 1 hour. Note that these will not be recorded so it is vital to attend to get the most from the Program.
On top of these minimum Program commitments, if you are also able to spend an additional 2 hours per week further developing your business idea (i.e.getting out and about), a suggested overall commitment is in the order of 3 - 5 hours per week. Of course we hope that through this Program you will be able to eventually increase the time you spend on your side hustle until it becomes a full-fledged business!
Finally, starting a side hustle is no small undertaking. Successful participants will be those committed to having an open mind, being patient, and comfortable getting out of their comfort zone.
Who is delivering the Program?
Sparrowly Group is running the Side Hustle Bootcamp Program. Their team of mentors will provide guidance to participants as they work through the online content and will host the group workshops.
How much interaction will I have with the Program mentors?
Sparrowly Group’s mentoring team will work with participants throughout their side hustle journey providing tailored advice and direction. Participants can connect with mentors through a number of touch points:
Mentors will be able to answer questions posted as discussion items within the online lessons.
For group workshops, mentors will curate and respond to frequently asked questions from participants in addition to working through specific areas that participants need help in.
Program participants will also be invited into a curated Facebook group of fellow side hustlers, providing access to a national business community.
Need more information?
Contact the Sparrowly Group team at mentoring@sparrowly.com